BUSINESS

Asian stock market

Australian Stock Market Report – Afternoon August 20, 2014

By the end of the day, the ASX 200 (XJO) both finished 0.19% up 10.8 points at 5637.6. US consumer prices rose only 0.1% in July, just below expectations. Housing starts up by 15.7% at 1.093 Million annual rate for July, well above the forecasted 969,000. US shares finished with solid gains, the Dow and S&P 500 up 0.5% and the Nasdaq up 0.4%. Iron ore and steel prices continue to fall in China, with traders unimpressed by the Chinese government's efforts to boost construction demands.
Stock market indices

Global Markets Overview – August 20, 2014

The momentum in equities has continued with further gains through European and US trade. It seems investors are still responding to downgraded geopolitical risk, with a further kicker coming from signs of improvement in the US housing market. Heading into the FOMC minutes I thought we'd actually see a bit of caution being exercised, particularly considering the developments from the last meeting where Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser dissented.
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Sydney

Melbourne Is World’s Most Liveable City for 4th Consecutive Year

Another study confirmed Australia's high-quality of life after the city of Melbourne was named on Tuesday by the Economic Intelligence Unit's yearly Liveability Survey as the most liveable city in the world. It is the fourth consecutive year that Melbourne was recognised as the best city in the world where to live.
Cases of Pepsi are displayed for sale in Carlsbad

Toxicants in Coca-Cola Drinks

Coca-Cola is a drink that anyone can not resist, not knowing its effects on health. It is a challenge for parents to let their children minimize drinking it.
Stock market

Australian Stock Market Report – Afternoon August 19, 2014

The winning streak continued with shares hitting fresh six-year highs, rising for a third day and remaining above the key 5600pt level. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) improved by a modest 0.1 per cent despite mixed performances from global markets overnight. The US economy expanded at a faster than expected 4 per cent annual pace in the June quarter, while comments by the US central bank relating to inflation has increased the market's expectations of an earlier rate rise. The default of Arge...
Housing

Three U.S. Federal Agencies Cooperate for More Housing Choices

Three U.S. agencies pledged stricter cooperation to provide communities with more housing choices, make transportation systems more efficient and reliable, and create vibrant neighborhoods that attract business development and jobs while protecting the environment.
Armed pro-Russian separatists stand guard as monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and members of a Malaysian air crash investigation team inspect the crash site of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, near the village of

Global Markets Overview – August 19, 2014

Equities extended their gains in overnight trade as investors responded to downgraded geopolitical risk. Russia and Ukraine are reportedly progressing talks to end the conflict, while Iraq is making progress against the militants. The economic calendar was relatively light, but positioning is likely to start gearing up as we head towards the business end of the week. The US dollar will be the main point of focus with the FOMC meeting minutes and Jackson Hole taking centre stage. Any indications ...
Malaysian Airlines Jet

A Month After Ukraine Plane Crash, Malaysia Airlines Doubles Commission of Australian Travel Agents to 11% to Boost Seat Sales

To help boost seat sales, Malaysia Airlines had offered Australian travel agents doubling of their commission to 11 per cent, The Australian reports. The air carrier, which suffered financially because of the two tragedies involving its Boeing 777 jets within four months, advised the agents that by September all tickets issued in and all travel originating from Australia would enjoy the new commission rate.
New York Stock Exchange

Australian Stock Market Report – Afternoon August 18, 2014

The ASX200 enjoyed a flirtation with both buyers and sellers over the course of the first trading day of the week. In early trade the index started with a gain of 16 points before quickly surrendering the improvement. At the lows of the day shortly thereafter the market was up by almost a point. In the late part of the morning buyers once again exerted themselves and the index commenced a rally that took in almost 18 points. The move higher wasn't validated by investor interest with volume on...
A train hauling carriages filled with iron ore is seen on the outskirts of Port Hedland in the Pilbara region of Western Australia in this December 3, 2013 file photo. If Australian miners are worried about the dramatic decline in iron ore prices, it does

Australian Stock Market Report – Afternoon August 15, 2014

Local shares have finished the week on a solid footing. One of the encouraging aspects of the session was the recovery from a late morning slump. Thereafter the ASX 200 moved on to make new highs for the session. Over the course of the week the index rose 2% recovering the 2.2% that was surrendered in the previous week. Most sectors enjoyed buying support over the course of the day although energy names were being held back on weaker oil prices. World oil prices slumped in the last day reflectin...
Stock market

Australian Stock Market Report – Midday August 15, 2014

The Australian sharemarket is up for the fourth time this week, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) rising by 0.25 per cent. This takes the gains so far this week to 2.3 per cent; the best week in six months and completely making up for last week's 2.1 per cent slump.
Real estate

Canada Developers Have a Taste for U.S. Hotspots

While China has surpassed Canada in terms of sales volume, Canada remains the United States real estate market's top foreign buyer, the National Association of Realtors reported in its 2014 Profile of International Home Buying Activity.
Zillow

Zillow to Acquire Web Real Estate Site Trulia

Zillow Inc., the biggest real estate Web site in the US, is set to acquire the second-largest online real estate company Trulia Inc., for around $3.5 billion in stock. Both companies registered more than 68 million visitors in June, or about 71 per cent of online users under ComScore's real estate category.
European Central Bank

Global Markets Overview – August 15, 2014

The geo-political troubles of last month continue to slide off the front page; both Iraq and Ukraine are showing signs of reaching equilibrium in the respective conflicts, meaning the markets are refocusing on central banks.
Unemployment

Australian Stock Market Report – Morning August 15, 2014

In US economic news, new claims for unemployment insurance rose by 21,000 in the latest week to 311,000, above forecasts for a result near 295,000. Import prices fell by 0.2% in July while export prices were flat. Both results were slightly firmer than forecast.
Asian stock market

Australian Stock Market Report – Afternoon August 14, 2014

The winning streak continued with shares hitting fresh six-year highs, rising for a third day and remaining above the key 5600pt level. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) improved by a modest 0.1 per cent despite mixed performances from global markets overnight. The US economy expanded at a faster than expected 4 per cent annual pace in the June quarter, while comments by the US central bank relating to inflation has increased the market's expectations of an earlier rate rise. The default of Arge...
Stock market indices

Australian Stock Market Report – Midday August 14, 2014

The Australian sharemarket has been unable to replicate yesterday's 1.3 per cent surge at lunch, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) down 0.3 per cent. Today is one of the busiest days for markets in the region with a barrage of earnings results out in Australia, Japan's quarterly growth update issued this morning and plenty of Chinese data scheduled for release this afternoon.
A couple hold hands as they walk through downtown Sydney with their shopping from Australian department store retailer Myer, March 6, 2014.

Global Markets Overview – August 14, 2014

The choppy price action in equities continued with the pendulum swinging in the way of the bulls this time around. Perhaps the lack of fresh bad news on the geopolitical front calmed investor concerns. This gave investors a chance to focus on the raft of economic releases across the globe, with significant emphasis placed on disappointing US retail sales data. Given negative US data is now being perceived as positive for equities again, this reading helped ease fears of an early Fed funds rate h...
Retailer

Australian Stock Market Report – Morning August 14, 2014

In US economic news, retail sales were flat in July, short of the expected 0.2% gain. Excluding autos, sales rose 0.1%, again short of forecasts for a 0.4% gain. The mortgage market index fell by 2.7% in the latest week, dragged down by a 4% fall in refinancing. Business inventories rose by 0.4% as expected in June.

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